Botched Joke Forensics

Let's do some comparison of two political scandals.

In the case of Trent Lott he apologized profusely and repeatedly for "lighthearted" remarks at a social event that inadvertently offended a large segment of the population. Pundits in the media were quick to assume the absolute worst implications from his remarks, and the affair was dragged out; with blood in the water the only satisfactory resolution was his resignation as Senate Majority Leader.

In the case of John Kerry he offered several defensive non-apologies for what he claimed afterwards was a "botched joke" - one which inadvertently offended a large segment of the population. Pundits in the media were quick to "explain what he really meant" and claim that it was actually the other side that was somehow on the attack. A satisfactory resolution to the matter consisted of "putting it behind us" the second he sounded the correct note of truthiness in an apologetic PR statement.

The political forensics are not very difficult to perform, even by the average voter. There is a marked difference with the way the dinosaur media handles these types of situations, especially in a lead-up to an election, and the reaction of the political parties does illustrate a few things about how they differ on key issues.

But having made the difference clear we shouldn't let the Kerry incident eclipse the larger issues at stake in the election. Everyone needs to turn out on Tuesday, and in many cases choke down the nausea that will rise in their gullet - and pull the trigger on the issues and politicians that are closest to where they stand on the events of the day. The next few days are going to be a feverous blaze of machine-gun politics - and there's plenty of time for another nasty October surprise from either side. Part of our civic obligation is to cut away the spin and confusion and cast our vote anyway.

Tags: John Kerry, Trent Lott, Media Bias